Finesentence

Pale Meaning: Definition, Examples, and Translations

😨
Save

pale

pale

🇺🇸 /ˈpeɪɫ/ · 🇬🇧 /pˈeɪl/

Definitions

Context #1 | Adjective

skin color

light in color or having little color

Synonyms

ashen, light, pasty, wan.

Examples of usage

  • Her face was pale with shock.
  • The walls were painted a pale blue color.
Context #2 | Adjective

lacking intensity

lacking intensity of color or brightness

Synonyms

dim, faint, weak.

Examples of usage

  • The pale light of dawn filtered through the trees.
  • The pale moonlight illuminated the path.
Context #3 | Verb

become pale

to lose color or brightness; to become pale

Synonyms

blanch, fade, whiten.

Examples of usage

  • She paled with fear when she saw the ghost.
  • His face paled as he realized his mistake.

Translations

To see the translation, please select a language from the options available.

Quick facts about “pale”

Pale is a 1-syllable adjective and verb. It is pronounced /ˈpeɪɫ/ in American English and /pˈeɪl/ in British English. On finesentence.com it has 3 meanings, 10 synonyms, and translations into 21 languages. It ranks #2,924 among the most common English words.

Origin of 'pale'

The word 'pale' originated from the Latin word 'pallidus' meaning 'pale, colorless'. It has been used in English since the late 14th century to describe something light in color or lacking intensity. Over time, 'pale' has evolved to represent a variety of meanings related to color, brightness, and emotion.

See also: impale, paleness, paler, paling.

Rhymes

Pale rhymes with cale, gael, grail, quale, soleil, surveil, sale and scale.

See all rhymes →

Word Frequency Rank

At position #2,924, this word belongs to solid intermediate vocabulary. It's frequently used in both casual and formal contexts and is worth learning for better fluency.